New Old Camera – Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z3

So I impulse bought a camera lot recently in an online auction. Initially, I was really bidding on a standard zoom lens for my Canon DSLR, but there were a few other goodies that caught my eye. One such goodie was the Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z3. A mighty 4MP bridge camera from 2004 sporting a real 12X Zoom and Anti-shake – in its time, this must have been an impressive camera.

Loading in some AA’s (4 of them), I was pleased to see it come to life… quickly flashing ‘no memory card’. After a lot of fiddling, I found in its original firmware, this thing was limited to either 512mb or 1GB. I only had a 16MB card (about 5 photos) and several 2GB cards. Fortunately with some web hunting, I found the one and only firmware update it received (which was a big thing in 2004 really) – This allows it to work with 2GB SD cards – Excellent! Successfully updated, I headed down to Devonport on Auckland North Shore for a walk and shoot.

Now, Im a fan of keeping old tech going in general – less to landfill and all that. I have also slowly come to realise that in the digital camera world, though we have progressed so far in technology around sensors, some of the old stuff really is still pretty usable for hobby grade life. Below 4MP is pretty creative stuff (I had a floppy disk camera set a few years back – less than 1MP), but 4MP up – it’s not terrible!…it’s viable. Are all these shots detail rich? – no… but they are not total blurred mess either. Creativity at junk prices can be had! The 35mm zoom equivalent of this thing is 35-420mm F2.8-F4.5 (ASA/ISO is 50-400)- thats a lot of zoom in a large coat pocket. The colour rendering is… nice. I didn’t do much editing at all in these images here – just a boarder, de-haze and for a couple a graduated filter as the sun was harsh and the sky was all over the show (as was the rain) today – old cameras do lack dynamic range for sure! (but so did slide film).

I went in with pretty low expectations.

“I’ll shoot a ‘roll’, pick a few images I like, write a blog post and find it a new custodian as I need to recoup costs and I’ll never touch it again”

Im now not sure I will let this one go just yet. It was a joy to shoot really – having the (very early) EVF and option to turn on to that by default was a pleasure. The camera is full of mode and setting options. The zoom range and all things considered quality of image at full zoom for such an old relic at 4MP really is fantastic. Now I need to make up my spend finances another way. It seems I always have a Minolta in the collection one way or another! (old school Minolta fan here)

These last three shots just show the range of this camera – ‘super macro’ – 1cm from subject. Full wide, and looking central to shot, full zoom (behind dirty glass windows for those two).

January 25, 2026 0

The Journey or the Destination

As I leave my summer holidays behind and return to work, I begin to look back on my time off. I shot this image on my Sony Nex 5N whilst camping the other week at the gateway to the ‘Far North’ of New Zealand. It was shot at the far end of the 210mm (so full frame 315mm’ish), handheld climbing a hill and wide open. As a result, it’s not the sharpest image in the box… but I like it.

The paradox between the two subjects. One powering along at high speed, leaving a trail. The other, full sail, but slowly pushing in the opposite direction, leaving no trace. I’ve titled it ‘The Journey or the Destination’, but who knows – it’s all relative and you can interchange the story for both subjects. It was kind of the theme of the walk of the day also. I had a goal of where I was getting to, but as I will share another time, I stopped along the way at many points taking in the scenery.

Neither ‘Journey’ or ‘Destination’ exist in isolation. If we only look to the destination, we can diminish the value of the journey – missing moments which simply make up ‘life’. Focusing on the journey without destination can lead to aimlessness – a world of moments, but for what – where is your ikigai (reason for being). Both have a part to play

Make sure you have a bit of ikigai in your journey today – it does not need to be large, world changing, skilled or profitable. Just one small thing which sparks a sense of joy or purpose in the day.

January 19, 2026 0

The Ocean

Scene from Coastal North Shore, Auckland, New Zealand

Lumix GF1

The Ocean

The Ocean has its silent caves,
Deep, quiet, and alone;
Though there be fury on the waves,
Beneath them there is none.

The awful spirits of the deep
Hold their communion there;
And there are those for whom we weep,
The young, the bright, the fair.

Calmly the wearied seamen rest
Beneath their own blue sea.
The ocean solitudes are blest,
For there is purity.

The earth has guilt, the earth has care,
Unquiet are its graves;
But peaceful sleep is ever there,
Beneath the dark blue waves.

NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE – 1825

January 5, 2026 0

Waters Journey

“Water is life’s matter and matrix, mother and medium. There is no life without water.” – Albert Szent-Györgyi, M.D.

I can’t imagine living in an area where water is not abundantly surrounding me – be it in rivers, lakes or the ocean. Having it coming out the tap is pretty changing for humanity too!

Revisiting the walk to Kitekite Falls the other day, we see the water loaded from the mountain streams, amalgamating into rivers and as above, occasionally tumbling off cliff edges.

Flowing from the waterfall, back into a river and finally finding the mouth to the ocean.

We take water for granted – and really notice quick when it does not flow so easily. Only about 2.5% of all the earths water is fresh, and this is reducing with climate change. We can desalinate (as some countries and towns already do), but that takes a lot of energy.

“Water is the engine of all nature.” – Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo and Albert (above) are pretty bang on. It’s a precious thing that humanity is inherently tied to forever. We just need to take care of it.

Footnote – As mentioned in the image. Image 1 is edited and altered. It was a super busy day at the falls with dozens of people there. Just for a little experimentation, I played around with removing some of the audience and swimmers, leaving the one person in solitude to take in the beauty of Kitekite Falls.

Final note – Haha! its 2026… not 2025 as edited on the photos. Silly me!

January 4, 2026 0

Linked By A Common Ancestor

Fungi. Remarkably, these spores of design are more related to animals (therefore us) than plants!

Rather than photosynthesising, like animals, fungi are heterotrophs – that is to say, they cannot produce their own nourishment and absorb/take it from elsewhere.

To be fair, the genetic relationship began a few years ago (about a billion) – but we share about 50% of our DNA!

We use them as food, medicine and all kind of alternative commercial products like fake leather and packaging. Pretty interesting.

Whilst on a holiday break forest bathing, we stopped and looked around. Lighting was not great, but we quickly found three types right next to the track. Might warrant a macro lens in the future!

January 3, 2026 0

The Benefits of Being Around Green

“I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order.” – John Burroughs April 3, 1837 – March 29, 1921

Whilst the modern take on science was not there in Mr Burroughs time, the concept of the restorative nature of trees and the forrest was well ingrained in human nature.

I read that in Japan, doctors prescribe nature walks, or “Shinrin-yoku” (forest bathing)to aid mental and physical health benefits of reduced stress, improved mood, better sleep, and boosted immune function -a recognised part of preventative healthcare.

Modern science tells us trees Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)or phytoncides, boost immune systems (increasing our natural killer cells), reduce stress, improve mood, and lower blood pressure. Inhaling these plant-emitted compounds enhances well-being, whilst also filtering and creating a healthier environment in general.

All this aside, for many of us, it just feels right, rejuvenating, peaceful.

Photos taken on the Lumix GF1, location: Kitekite Falls Walk, Piha, Auckland.

January 2, 2026 0

Dawn, Day, Dusk

April 18, 2022 0

Mairangi Bay stroll

Testing out a now aged, but nice Olympus Pen Mini 2, I took a seaside stroll along Mairangi Bay in Auckland.

Majority of shots using built in ‘art filters’ and just some casual experimental fun.

March 30, 2022 0

Back on Film

Pulling out the Ricoh KR-5 (circa 1978) and a roll of Fujifilm 200, we ventured out to the Auckland Winter Gardens. Featured sometime back in my past photos, the gardens were designed at the beginning of the 1900’s and opened in 1913.